ENVIRSC 1A03 Chapter Notes - Chapter 18: Cumulus Cloud, Outflow Boundary, Sea Breeze
25 Sep 2016
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Document Summary
Thunderstorms: are storms with vertical motion sufficient to cause lightning and thunder. They are characterized by cumulonimbus clouds and they may vary in intensity. Air mass thunderstorms are isolated and short lived. Severe thunderstorms may produce strong winds and rain, they last a short amount of time. Multi-cell thunderstorms are massive, well-organized complexes of storms. Air mass thunderstorms: are isolated storms generated by the daytime heating of land surfaces. They tend to occur during the spring and summer afternoons as the environmental lapse rate rises due to heating. As a result, the unstable air leads to the formation of cumulus clouds. There is no interaction between air masses and there is no frontal activity to sustain lift. These storms are usually short lived as air mixes and cools. Air mass thunderstorms consist of several updrafts each following a sequence of stages. The cumulus stage: during which uplift begins and clouds form. The mature stage: during which precipitation begins to fall.
